Programming Interviews Exposed: Secrets to Landing Your Next Job, 3rd Edition

Introduction

Landing a great programming job isn’t a matter of luck; it’s a matter of preparation. The programming interview process that most software firms use today is designed to determine whether you can actually code. It can be a grueling process, especially because the limitations imposed by the interview format make the process almost completely different from anything you experience in school or on the job. If you’ve never encountered it before, it can be quite a shock. Even great programmers who are inexperienced with programming interviews often struggle if they are unprepared for what they will face.

This book was written to prepare you for the technical interview process so that you have no problem demonstrating how great a programmer you are. It doesn’t teach you how to program; it shows you how to use the programming skills you have to shine in a programming interview. As you read this book, keep in mind that programming interviews (for the most part) are not factual recall tests, so this book isn’t a cheat sheet of all the facts you need to know for your interview. Instead, it teaches by example the techniques and thought processes you need to succeed. The best way to internalize these is to take time to work through and understand the problems. If you do, you’ll approach your interviews with confidence because you’ll be prepared to solve any problem you’re given, putting you that much closer to landing the job you want.